Unlike most of my peers, I didn't read Moby Dick in high school. In fact, I wasn't familiar with Melville much more than being able to name his as the author of this book. Beyond that, I knew little about him as a writer. With that said, reading "Bartleby, the Scrivener" and "Paradise of Bachelors and Tartarus of Maids" was my first exposure to Melville, and I have to say that I am greatly intrigued by the subject matter about which he writes and the manner in which he does so.
While there is no doubt that these specific works of Melville's are prose works, his narrative style has a poetic, and almost lyrical quality to it. Perhaps it's his play with alliteration and consonance, as is evident in the descriptive lines, "[The furniture]...is a thing which every sensible American should learn from every sensible Englishman, that glare and glitter, gimcracks and gewgaws, are not industry to indispensable to domestic solacement" (Melville 1513). The prominent initial "g" sounds, as well as the mid-word and initial "d" sound strike us with a strong cadence. We even pick up on some subtle rhyme in addition to this alliteration in some of his prose, too: "In what is now the Temple Garden the old Crusaders used to exercise their steeds and lances; the modern Templars now lounge on the benches beneath the trees, and, switching their patent-leather boots, in gay discourse exercise at repartee" (1511).
The effect of Melville's lyricism? I'd have to say it encourages us to slow down and appreciate the beauty of his narrative voice and diction, and appeals to our ears. Melville's work has an oratory quality to it that stands out to us, and unlike many works of prose, beckons us to try our hand at reading the prose aloud to pay homage to the subliminal poetry of the language!
Nice post Ali. I too noticed that Melville's work has an oratory quality. The positions of the commas in the lengthy sentences allow for speakers to pause and breathe. The commas also direct the speaker's emphasis so certain details are more prominent and important. Melville certainly uses commas to better and greater effect than Cooper and I believe with more finesse than Emerson. Cooper significantly overuses commas in his quest to appear well-written and Emerson uses the commas too blatantly as a means to direct a reading of his works aloud.
ReplyDeleteYou'll be happy to know that Melville also wrote quite a bit of poetry, and for a while turned to poetry entirely. He was never very successful as a poet, however, and very few of his poems are read today. Perhaps we can start a revival?
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